Women in Politics in the American City

Mirya R. Holman

"Women in Politics in the American City systematically examines an important question—the impact of gender on municipal government—in a far-reaching way and at a time when we may expect women to be more likely to enter politics in the near future. The findings are compelling and represent a developing area in the scholarship on representation from a democratic theory perspective. There is simply no other work that examines women at this level of government so thoroughly."Melissa Deckman, Louis L. Goldstein Professor of Public Affairs and Chair of the Political Science Department at Washington College in Maryland

How do female municipal leaders influence policymaking in American cities? Can gender determine who gets a say in local politics or what programs cities fund? These are some of the questions raised and answered in Mirya Holman's provocativeWomen in Politics in the American City.

This book provides the first comprehensive evaluation of the influence of gender on the behavior of mayors and city council members in the United States. Holman considers the effects of gender in local, urban politics and analyzes how a leader’s gender does and does not influence policy preferences, processes, behavior, and outcomes.

Through her effective use of original survey data to evaluate policy attitudes, along with observations of city council meetings and interviews with leaders and community members, Holman demonstrates the importance of considering the gender of leaders in local office.

Women in Politics in the American City reveals not only that the involvement of women in local politics matters but also that it has significant consequences for urban policy and for state and local democracy.

Excerpt

Reviews

"Holman poses an unusual question on a topic few have studied: Does electing women to municipal office make a difference in policy decisions? The author answers that women mayors and council members bring a neglected perspective to policymaking and support women’s issues...more frequently than men in local office.... Holman’s research relies on interviews and surveys, and the book is replete with tables and diagrams, copious notes, an extensive bibliography, and several appendixes."Library Journal

Contents

Acknowledgments

1. Urban Government, Democracy, and the Representation of Gender in the United States
2. She Says, He Says: Gender and Policy Attitudes
3. Gender, Power, and Policy Making in American Cities
4. The More Democratic Sex? Deliberative Democracy, Gender, and Urban Governance
5. Sex and the City: Policy Outcomes and Urban Leadership
6. For the Good and the Bad of the City: Female Leaders and Urban Interests